Monday, May 31, 2010

KILLED BY TRAIN

Pedestrian Struck By NJ Transit Train

by MEREDITH TRAINA | wpix.com

6:53 PM EDT, May 30, 2010

NANUET, N.J. (WPIX) - A NJ Transit train struck and killed a pedestrian Saturday night on its way to Spring Valley.

The 7:22 p.m. train left Hoboken, running on the Pascack Valley Line before hitting a man on the tracks near the New York State Thruway overpass. The accident occurred north of the Nanuet station around 8:20 p.m., NJ Transit spokeswoman Courtney Carroll said.

The victim's name and age were not released.

According to local papers, a teenage boy was seen lying in a Nanuet ambulance, just off Route 59. He eventually left with some adults. Other people at the scene, including other teenage boys, were visibly upset.

Local officials say the Pascack Valley Line has been problematic in the past -- specifically the stretch between Nanuet and Spring Valley. That's because local residents tend to take illegal shortcuts that interfere with rail traffic.

Just last year, Sen. Charles Schumer called on the railroad to increase vigilance along Lawrence Street, where 13 people have died since 1985.

There were just eight passengers on the train at the time. They were escorted off the train and given the option to leave in a bus provided by the MTA, or make their own alternative arrangements.